States cannot afford to compete among themselves to buy coronavirus vaccines – any more than being forced to buy individual stores of weapons and ammunition in case of an attack by Pakistan – Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said Wednesday afternoon.
Mr Kejriwal called on the centre to play its part in the vaccination drive and urgently procure enough doses to inoculate people in the national capital and across the country, rather than leaving it to states to try and negotiate separate deals with manufacturers.
“Why isn’t this country buying vaccines? We can’t leave it to individual states. We are at war against COVID-19. If Pakistan attacks India, will the centre leave states to defend themselves? Will Uttar Pradesh buy its own tanks or Delhi its own guns?” the Chief Minister asked.
India has been hit hard by the second wave of infections, with more than 3,000 deaths per day since April 28 and over 2,000 a day since April 21. By contrast, the most deaths in a day in the first wave was less than 1,200. The second wave has coincided with a worrying dip in vaccinations, as the centre and states go back and forth over the demand and supply of doses.
“We cannot change what happened but, for the past two months, every state is trying to get its own vaccines. As far as I know, no state has been able to manage a single dose (apart from stocks supplied by the centre). Many states tried but failed…” Mr Kejriwal said.